To wonder what job people do if they get good maternity pay?

[Aliveinwanderland]

I have heard time and time again about women getting 6 months full pay, even a year full pay, for maternity leave!

What job do these women do??? Seriously I am tempted by a career change!

6mths full pay, 3mths statutory, 3mths unpaid. All holiday accrued during your mat leave including bank holidays are added up. We have the option to tag that on at the end (paid) so that you have 13mths off or take it as a lump sum and return after 12mths and then begin to accrue holiday again. If you return before your full year you are allowed to carry over some holiday, providing you are in the first half of holiday year and you return full time. This is financial services (head office).

I'm a telecoms engineer, the company I work for didn't have a maternity policy until 2 years ago when I told them I was planning on having a baby. They were brilliant made one up very quickly and although I work for a small company they did their best to give me a little bit more than the basic statuary may pay, knowing I'd still lose a lot of money I started saving straight away. I had my baby in October and I'm still on mat leave ( so I've managed to take a full year off) so I'd say check what you will get and save to make up for the difference instead of moving jobs u'll be amazed how little you spend once ur on mat leave compared to life before when u go out all the time

I work for a bank and get 14 weeks full pay. Citi bank offer 6 months full pay!

Big multinational (all uk functions) - 9 months full pay but only if you have been there 3 years. Must payback if you leave before 6 months after return to work; must payback pro rated amount if return on fewer hours.

I work in a professional capacity for a blue chip, public sector, Big pharma company.

I'll be getting SMP. That's it.

I get to keep my company car, and the extra tax I have to pay for it whilst on mat leave.

Nhs and university jobs

I'm a civil servant, I work for NOMS. We get 6 months full pay, then a further 3 months of SMP, any time taken after this is unpaid.

DP is military, they offer the same package.

Enhanced pay has to be repaid if you don't return for a month after, but annual leave accrued can be used in lieu of notice if you decide to go back.

I had a 3 year career break after DD1, went back into my same job and accrued pay increments whilst off

decide not to go back that should have been!

The enhanced maternity package at top UK law firms is now around 9 months full pay. But you need to be working there for around 2-3 years to get the enhanced package. Worth staying just to pop one out.

Fcukthetww - which department? As far as I know civil servants mainly get 6 months full pay; 3 months SMP apart from DfE & DCMS which offer 9 months full pay

Civil service back in the day! six months full pay, then six months stat pay. I only had one child, loads of people took the piss, came back from Mat leave pregnant etc.

How about a career change into Learning and Development? Your teaching skills are transferable and plenty of opportunities in the private sector where the likes of Unilever and Ernst and Young have enhanced maternity packages.

It's more the company they work for. I got 6 months BUT it was on the basis that I'd return to work after a year, which I did, part time. It was a very big MNC.

I came back from mat leave pregnant, Hiro. Is that taking the piss? Should I have checked with my employer first?

I got full pay from aviva. The problem was I told them I wouldn't be coming back, and their condition was that if you didn't go back you'd have to pay them back. I insisted that as I definitely wasn't going back, they should not pay me it at all if they'd want it back, they refused, so it was classed as unsolicited- they forced the money on me- so they couldn't claim it back.

So I finally got my maternity policy through yesterday (after waiting 4 months for it to be written) and they're offering 9 weeks full pay (inclusive of SMP) and then SMP for the reminder. Is that good or bad? I think it's bad and equates only to a little more than 3 weeks more pay than I already expected from SMP and which the organisation can claim back from HMRC. Interested to hear views though. 20 employees, public sector funded, but established as company limited by guarantee. The CEO wanted an enhanced policy comparable to other organisations, but I'm not convinced that is what has been delivered...??

SMP is no longer refunded by HMRC.

Sorry, must have dreamed that. Just checked and it is.

NHS. I get 2 months full pay, 4 months half pay + SMP, then 3 months SMP.

I work in the NHS, got 6 months 90% pay/half +stat - whichever is more (worked out roughly full pay), three months stat.

Massively jealous at these! I worked in Retail Head Office and got the bog standard 6 wks at 90%, then SMP till 9 months, then naff all.

Standard in retail in my experience, tight buggers.

I work for a large international (but UK-based) law firm at which the policy is 3 months on full pay, 3 months on half pay, and 6 months SMP.

I know a lawyer at a US firm who gets 12 months on full pay (but has to pay it back if she lives within a year of returning). Weird because I thought the Americans were really tight about holidays and maternity leave.